A Russian metal company says it improperly pumped sewage into the Arctic tundra and suspended responsible employees.
MOSCOW – A Russian metalworking company said on Sunday that it improperly pumped sewage into the Arctic tundra and suspended responsible employees.
Nornickel’s statement is the second time in a month that the company has been connected to pollution in the ecologically sensitive region.
In May, about 21,000 tons of diesel fuel were leaked after a deposit at a Nornickel-operated power plant collapsed; Some of the fuel entered a lake that feeds an arm of the Arctic Sea.
The statement came hours after independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta reported that heavy metal-contaminated water from tailings at a nickel-processing plant was being pumped into a river.
Nornickel said the water was improperly pumped due to an overflowing sump; He said that the water was “cleared” and that there is no threat of waste leakage.
Both facilities are near Norilsk, north of the Arctic Circle, 2,900 kilometers (1,800 miles) northeast of Moscow.
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This story has been corrected to show that the company name is Nornickel, not Norilsk Nickel.
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